Jim McGovern frustrated after loss in Trump budget bill fight, but says "I don't feel hopeless"
Jim McGovern, a Democratic congressman from Massachusetts, said that while he is frustrated by the recent passage of President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful bill," he isn't giving up his fight yet.
McGovern sat down with WBZ-TV in a one-on-one interview.
"I'm frustrated, but I don't feel helpless, I don't feel hopeless and I still have a lot of fight in me," said McGovern (D-Second District), fresh off a narrow loss in the Trump budget bill fight.
How "big, beautiful bill" could impact Massachusetts
He'll be needing all the fight he can muster. In an interview for the Sunday morning edition of WBZ's "Keller At Large," McGovern said the bill could have a devastating impact on many Massachusetts residents.
"We expect up to 16 million people will lose their health care as a result of these cuts, the largest cut in food assistance in history," he says. "Forty-two million people will see a decrease in their SNAP [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program] benefit...to pay for a tax cut that primarily benefits the wealthiest people in this country."
What does he think can be done about it?
"We're going to try to see whether we can reverse some of this stuff," McGovern said. "Obviously, I don't know whether we will be able to do it. That's why this next election matters. But in this big, ugly bill that Trump passed, it requires states to assume more of the financial burden of SNAP. So if we're not going to cut benefits for people, it will mean that states like Massachusetts, in fact, every state in this country will have to pick up a bigger share. In the case of Massachusetts, it may be hundreds of millions of dollars more that the state's going to have to come up with every year."
Will President Trump's budget help Democrats?
Some Democrats believe fallout from the budget bill will help them regain control of the House in the 2026 midterm elections.
But McGovern sounds a cautionary note.
"I think it's important that we remind people about the devastation that these cuts are going to have on our economy and on their lives in particular. But you can't win elections by just being against things," he says. "You have to be for things, and I think Democrats have to focus in on issues of affordability, because life is still hard for a lot of people, not just those who are struggling in poverty, but for the middle class. I mean, food prices are still too high, the cost of living is still too high, and with Trump's tariffs, it might even get worse. You know, we have to offer solutions that are that are realistic, that people believe can actually happen if we win an election, as a way to counter that."
McGovern also discussed the continuing reporting on former President Biden's deliberations about running again and his own future plans in the interview, which can be viewed on-demand in its entirety above.
Please join us every Sunday at 8:30 a.m. for more conversations with top policymakers on the weekend edition of "Keller At Large."
